Marywood University Weigh To Go October 27, 2010

Goal Setting Useful tool to help with motivation and to stay on track You want your goal(s) to be smart S - specific M - measurable A - attainable R – realistic T - timely

Specific Goals should be straightforward and emphasize what you want to happen Specifics help us to focus our efforts and clearly define what we are going to do Specific is the What, Why, and How – What are you going to do? Use action words such as, change, plan, build etc. – Why is this important to do at this time? What do you want to ultimately accomplish? – How are you going to do it? (By…) – Instead of setting a goal to lose weight or be healthier, set a specific goal to lose 5 lbs or to walk 5 miles

Measurable If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it Choose a goal with measurable progress, so you can see the change occur, Be specific! – I want to walk 30 min. 5 days per week shows the specific target to be measured, I want to be healthier is not as measurable When you measure your progress, you stay on track, reach your target dates, and experience the joy of achievement that drives you on to continued effort required to reach your goals

Attainable When you identify goals that are important to you, you begin to figure out ways to achieve them Goals you set which are too far out of reach, you probably won’t commit to doing them Although you may start with the best of intentions, knowing it’s too much means your subconscious will keep reminding you of this fact and will stop you from even giving it your best

Attainable, Cont’d A goal needs to stretch you slightly so you feel you can do it and it will need a real commitment from you – Example, if you aim to lose 20 lbs in 1 week is not achievable – Setting a goal to lose 1 lb and when you’ve achieved that, aiming to lose a further 1 lb, will keep it achievable for you The feeling of success which this brings helps you to remain motivated

Realistic Realistic means “do-able” Devise a plan or a way of getting there which makes the goal realistic The goal needs to be realistic for you and where you are at the moment – A goal of never again eating sweets, cakes, chips and chocolate may not be realistic for someone who really enjoys these foods

Realistic, Cont’d It may be more realistic to set a goal of eating a piece of fruit each day instead of 1 sweet food You can then choose to work towards reducing the amount of sweet products gradually when this feels realistic for you Be sure to set goals that you can attain with some effort! – Too difficult and you set the stage for failure, but too low sends the message that you aren’t very capable – Set the bar high enough for a satisfying achievement!

Timely Set a timeframe for the goal: for next week, in 3 months, etc. Putting an end point on your goal gives you a clear target to work towards If you don’t set a time, the commitment is too vague, It tends not to happen because you can start at any time Without a time limit, there’s no urgency to start taking action now Time must be measurable, attainable and realistic

Tips Think both short and long term Write down your goals Be conscious of setbacks Evaluate yourself The closer you come to your goal the harder it will be Don’t be afraid to start over

Achievement Do you know how to achieve your goal? What additional resources do you need?

Rewards Rewarding yourself can be helpful in reaching your goals Rewards can be given for small and large accomplishments Provide rewards that are not going to interfere with your goal

References SMART Goal Setting – A surefire way to achieve your goals, guide.comwww.goal-setting- guide.com Weight-loss goals: 10 tips for success, Exercise for beginners – Setting goals,